Lost in the mail, lost in the paper shuffle, and possibly misfiled were among the reasons that Republican leaders in five Iowa counties gave as why votes were ultimately not counted in the Jan. 3 caucuses.

Eight Iowa precinct caucuses in five counties lost the documentation of the Jan. 3 caucus straw poll — called Form E — and could not be counted in the final totals for the tightest caucus contest in history.

The absent documents left some county GOP leaders embarrassed and others fuming — but all apologetic to voters whose votes were not counted because of the glitches.

The Mason City Ward 2, Precinct 2 results disappeared somewhere between Mason City and Des Moines. Cerro Gordo County GOP Chairman John Rowe said he mailed an 18-inch-thick stack of documents to the state Republican offices the day after the caucuses. The missing precinct was among them.

“Where it went after it left the post office, I don’t know, but I would not have sent the packet if there was missing information,” Rowe said Thursday. “I tried to make photocopies of the packet at my office but the copy machine broke down.”

Four Lee County precincts are among those the party said did not turn in certified vote totals. Lee County GOP Chairman Don Lucas said he believes supporters of a candidate — he’s not sure which — took the certification document to report to the candidate how he or she did and never brought it back.

Emmet County GOP leaders were said to be traveling on business and unable to answer questions about their missing forms.

In Franklin County, the Geneva-Reeve Precinct missing form apparently got lost either at the precinct site or in Des Moines.

“I have no idea what has happened to it,” said Karen Zander, chairwoman of the Franklin County Republican Party. “We’ve searched high and low for it. I don’t know what to say.”

Shawn Dietz, the Franklin County Republican co-chairman, said, “From speaking to people in Geneva-Reeve, they feel like their vote didn’t count and that’s terrible.”

In Pocahontas County, the Center-South Roosevelt-North Lincoln precinct was lost. Michael Ryan, county chair, accepted responsibility for the error Thursday and apologized to voters who turned out and weren’t counted.

“Good folks made it out and gave up their time there, and their voices were shut out,” he said. “It’s sad. It’s not a good thing. I can’t go back and reverse time, but I wish I could.”